DURHAM – Laura Gunter, a familiar face in North Carolina’s life science industry, is the new president of NCBIO (N.C. Biosciences Organization)which acts as a lobbying group for business across the state.
Gunter succeeds longtime president Sam Taylor, who died in February.
“We wish to congratulate Laura on her appointment as president of NCBIO. We have been fortunate and appreciative to have her leadership on an interim basis over the last several months,” said Neal Fowler, chairman of the NCBIO Board of Directors and former CEO of Liquidia Corporation. “This is an exciting period of growth and innovation for the life science industry within our state. Her formal selection as president will enable her to set an exciting path forward to maximize our efforts in this important field.”
Gunter has served as interim president after Taylor’s death, having joined the group in 2013 and serving as executive vice president since 2020. She also has worked at the N.C. Biotech Center.
“I am honored to be asked to serve as president following in Sam’s footsteps,” Gunter said. “Sam was an example to us all and was deeply committed to the growth of the life sciences industry in North Carolina. I am looking forward to working with leaders in the state to build on our past success in bringing opportunity and prosperity to our members and to everyone in North Carolina. North Carolina has a long bipartisan history of supporting the industry and as we see the fruits of those policies, now is the time to continue bold action and be sure North Carolina remains a life science hub.”
Gunter, who earned an MBA at UNC-Chapel Hill, was selected by the board from among more than 100 candidates.
NCBIO represents one of the most important sectors of the North Carolina economy, life science firms being responsible for more than 220,000 jobs, more than $84 billion in annual economic impact and having grown 84% over a 10-year period ending in 2020.
